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• A dispute between Time Warner Cable and Viacom might have resulted in Time Warner Cable customers loosing access to several channels on midnight on January 1, 2009. After Viacom granted an extension at midnight, the two companies were able to strike a deal allowing Time Warner Cable to keep access to the 19 channels in question. As of January 1, 2009, the details of the contract had not been made public.Los Angeles Times: Viacom, Time Warner Cable Settle Contract Dispute (January 1, 2009)

• Fast Facts

  1. Viacom, a media conglomerate, provides 19 channels to Time Warner Cable
  2. Channels part of MTV Networks
  3. Time Warner customers could have lost 19 channels by 12: 10 a.m. January 1, 2009CBS 3: Time Warner Dispute May Bump Off Comedy Central (December 31, 2008)
  4. Dispute due to Viacom's plan to raise carriage feesCBS 3: Time Warner Dispute May Bump Off Comedy Central (December 31, 2008)
  5. 13 million customers would be affectedCBS 3: Time Warner Dispute May Bump Off Comedy Central (December 31, 2008)
  6. According to Viacom, the price increase equals to 23 cents a month per subscriber, or a total of $35.9 millionCBS 3: Time Warner Dispute May Bump Off Comedy Central (December 31, 2008)
  7. Comedy Central's Web site provides pop-ups explaining to Time Warner customers they could lose the channel and encouraging them to protestCBS 3: Time Warner Dispute May Bump Off Comedy Central (December 31, 2008)

• The Dispute

  The dispute was due to Viacom's plan to raise carriage fees for Time Warner by between 22% to 36% for each channel. Time Warner customers could have lost 19 channels, including Comedy Central, MTV and Nickelodeon, until the companies settled the dispute.CBS 3: Time Warner Dispute May Bump Off Comedy Central (December 31, 2008)

• Time Warner Cable Statement

  Time Warner Cable's CEO said the fees are "outrageous given the current economic conditions". According to CEO Glenn Britt, Time Warner asked for an extension of the current contract until negotiations are resolved, but Viacom did not agree. Time Warner said that if every channel asks for such price hikes, prices for customers would become unreasonable.Yahoo News: Statement from Glenn Britt, President & CEO, Time Warner Cable (December 31, 2008)

• Viacom Statement

  Viacom said the price increase is "reasonable" and "modest" and would equal to about 23 cents a month per subscriber, or a total of $35.9 million.CBS 3: Time Warner Dispute May Bump Off Comedy Central (December 31, 2008) Viacom said they are making the increase because Time Warner has "greatly undervalued our channels for so long".Viacom: Statement from Viacom (December 30, 2008)

• Channels Affected

  Comedy Central, CMT, Pure Country, Logo, Palladia, MTV, MTV 2, MTV Hits, MTV Jams, MTV Tr3s, Nickelodeon, Noggin, Nick 2, Nicktoons, Spike, The N, TV Land, VH1, VH1 Classic, and VH1 Soul

• Related Pages on Mahalo

  Time Warner Cable | Viacom | MTV | Comedy Central | Nickelodeon | Time Warner

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